Study: US Smartphone-Only Users More Active, But Drink More

Consumers in the United States that only use smartphones and don't pay for a landline are more active than people who do but are also more likely to drink and smoke, according to a recent study performed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the Department of Health and Human Services. As revealed by the data published by the federal agency on Friday, almost 30 percent of wireless-only users in the country had at least one "heavy drinking day" in the last 12 months, compared to 18.8 percent of consumers who still pay for a landline. Likewise, 18.4 percent of adults who use cell phones in favor of landlines are smokers, while just over 12 percent of landline users smoke, the study revealed.

According to the CDC's data, adults who don't pay for a landline are less likely to have children, primarily due to the fact that they're younger on average than those who do and are thus statistically less likely to be parents. For added context, the federal agency found that more than 70 percent of all adults between 25 and 34 in the country live in a household that doesn't have a landline, adding that almost 84 percent of wireless-only homes in the U.S. belong to unrelated adults without children. According to the report, the fact that younger adults are more likely to live in a household without a landline may also be related to the CDC's finding that wireless-only users are generally more active than people who still pay for a traditional landline, as the agency found that more than 41 percent of that demographic meets the federal physical activity guidelines published in 2008, compared to less than 37 percent of landline users who do the same.

Regardless, the CDC specifically noted that its data may be biased to a degree due to the fact that it isn't based on an equal number of households with and without a landline telephone connection. Regardless, the second half of 2016 marked an important milestone for the telecommunications industry in the U.S. as the majority of households in the country — 50.8 percent of them — did not pay for a landline in this period and only had access to cell phones, with industry watchers expecting that trend to continue in the future.

Dominik started at AndroidHeadlines in 2016 and is the Head Editor of the site today. He’s approaching his first full decade in the media industry, with his background being primarily in technology, gaming, and entertainment. These days, his focus is more on the political side of the tech game, as well as data privacy issues, with him looking at both of those through the prism of Android. Contact him at [email protected]